Personal Narrative: Fox Holes

But he was not there. He was buried with Martha under the white sand at the Jersey Shore. They were pressed together… yet he could not bring himself to worry about matters of security.”(Things they Carried Novel) Lieutenant Cross should have been focusing on his duties and this quote shows that while he was looking into the tunnel he thinks about Martha and him being buried. This demonstrates and shows that he shouldn’t be focusing on Martha while Ted lavender was previously shot, Cross has to be more mindful of where he currently was and he clearly has to understand that if Cross kept daydreaming about Martha then little could we find out that instead of Ted Lavender possibly dieing Cross could’ve possibly died with Ted at that time. In reality many people can be relatable to how Cross was clearly lost in his thoughts. In the Bloom’s guide of pg.22 a quote shows an example of how Jimmy cross was just lost in processes of thinking. “The episode goes on to detail the optimistic detachments of the letter and how, to Jimmy, they become unintentional love letters. Some nights, sitting in his foxhole, holding he pictures in his fingers, he imagines a complete life with Martha, a life antithetical to the experience he was undergoing”

Hundreds of battered and bruised bodies littered the floor. Sounds of fiery explosions and endless gunfire filled the air. Soldiers, whose uniforms were splashed with crimson, fought viciously and ruthlessly. Their aggressiveness stemmed from a newfound desperation to stay alive, which in turn, was caused by the war: The Vietnam War. The Vietnam War had claimed over thousands of lives and left survivors haunted by its atrocious events. The Vietnam War had an especially huge impact on Terry Erickson’s father and George Robinson, two fictitious characters from the short stories “Stop the Sun” and “Dear America.” The differences and similarities between the two men are striking, and they merit rigorous scrutiny.

Jimmy Cross being the immature lieutenant is affected being responsible of his men, and carries much of the war’s burden. Every time one of Cross’s men dies, he experiences deep regrettable feelings that he should have been a better

Jimmy cross was the leader of Tim O'Brien platoon. Jimmy Cross was in charge of all the men under his command but he never want to be in charge of all those young men and didn’t want the guilt that came with every time he lost a man in the Vietnam war. Every time he lost a man in the field he blamed himself that he wasn’t being the best and that every time a man was killed he would blame himself. When Jimmy Cross was visiting Tim O'Brien after the war was over.They shared memories of old time and friends they lost during the war and when Tim O'Brien had his photo’s out Jimmy Cross stared at the photo of Ted Lavender and Jimmy cross thought that Ted Lavender's death was his fault and he has the guilt still after the war was over about his death. “And said he’d never forgiven himself for Lavender’s death.” So Jimmy cross is still dealing with the guilt of losing Ted Lavender in the war and has not gotten over it. In the story “In the Field” Jimmy Cross talk’s about how he felt guilty and responsible for what happen to Kiowa when Kiowa died in the field. When LT Jimmy Cross received his orders for the top commanded he is to set up came in the field near the town that was near by. Kiowa sink into the mud in the middle of the night and died because of it LT Jimmy Cross blamed himself that Kiowa died and that he should have choose somewhere else to set up for the night even know a villager warned

He should have moved to higher ground for the night, should’ve radioed in false coordinates”(187). Hindsight is twenty-twenty and it is hard to watch Cross torment himself over a situation where, once again, he is only trying to do what is right. With the weight of the war on his back, Cross can see no reason other than his wanton lack of judgment for Kiowa’s death. He attempts to cope with his overwhelming guilt by composing a letter to Kiowa’s father right there in the shit field. “He would explain this to Kiowa’s father. Carefully, not covering up his own guilt, he would tell how the mortar rounds made craters in the slush… My own fault, he would say” (191). In another situation, perhaps, he could think rationally and realize that he could never have fathomed what the field would become when transformed by night and merciless rain. But with the backdrop of war, to Jimmy Cross there is no other reasonable cause for the death of his man.

In "The Things They Carried," violence brings forth an epiphany for First Lieutenant Jimmy Cross. Lieutenant Cross, while seeking comfort in his imagination, allows one of his men to be shot and killed. His lack of security led to an unnecessary casualty: "[Cross] hated himself. He had loved Martha more than his men, and as a consequence Lavender was

Because he so desperately wanted something to hold onto from his life in the past, he allowed it to take over his life in the present. His addiction to Martha controlled him so thoroughly that he consistently detached himself from the circumstances that laid in front of him. “Lieutenant Cross gazed at the tunnel. But he was not there. He was with Martha under the white sand at the Jersey shore.” (pg 11). This detachment existed not without consequences. A man lost his life due to Jimmy Cross’ failure to overcome his delusion of mutual love. “He had loved Martha more than his men, and as a consequence Lavender was now dead, and this was something he would have to carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war.” (pg.

When he was just a sophomore in college, Cross signed up to join the Reserve Officers Training Corps. At the time he did not fully understand the effects that this decision would have on him and only registered to gain some credits. His friends signing up for the course also greatly influenced his decision to become an officer. Once on the battlefield in Vietnam however, his inexperience is obvious and Jimmy Cross second-guesses almost everything he does. In the early stages of the war, Cross is very distracted by his daydreams and fantasies about a girl back home, Martha. They were dating, and Jimmy Cross imagines talking to her and staring at her pictures more than he actually focuses on the war. His distracted nature and lack of focus leads to platoon members being killed. After the death of Ted Lavender, Jimmy Cross realizes that he has been selfish and must help his men to survive the war. He shows a lot of maturity by destroying the photos and letters that he received from Martha and also throwing the good-luck pebble she gave him away. After he does this, Jimmy Cross becomes stricter on the men, but also a better leader. His failure to protect Ted Lavender causes Jimmy Cross to feel more determined to excel as a leader and protector to his troops. In The Things They Carried, Jimmy Cross represents all of

After the wreckage of the town was over, Jimmy Cross digs himself a fox hole in which he stayed in for two days. It is in this hole that Cross determines who he must be. More importantly, “He realized Martha did not love him and never would” (12). Freeing himself from the bonds of love, Cross is now able to focus on the mission, staying alive, and keeping his men safe. He vows that no man shall die because of his carelessness again.

pictures of her. He would read the letters at the end of a long day in a foxhole he dug. He would sometimes lick the seal of the envelope because he knew that Martha’s tongue had been there. This obsession distracts Cross from the war and from his platoon.

Cross comes to the decision to not make his mistake again of losing another man because of his thoughts of Martha. He watches in dishonor the horror of Ted Lavender being wrapped in his poncho and his body being lifted onto the helicopter while the other men smoke Ted’s dope. He further explains that not only the weapons but the things that him and his men carry are there only means of staying alive. Mostly they carry the basic necessities but when it’s dangerous missions they carry more to make them feel protected. It is evident that he expresses responsibility of not being there more for his men and hopes to change his leadership abilities. Lt. Cross says in disgrace, that he should have been worried about the security of his men but rather was lost in his love for Martha explaining, “It wouldn’t help Lavender, he knew that, but from this point on he would comport himself as an officer.” Lt. Cross’s remorse comes to light when he listens to Kiowa explain repeatedly how Lavender just dropped dead, no squirming, just dropped. This makes Lt. Cross’s fear it could have been him who died, which compels him to remove his emotions and concentrate on being an officer to his

Jimmy Cross's soldiers use their weapons as probes in order to find Kiowa's corpse. As the soldiers wonder which coordinates to march, Cross dives into his flashback. He compares the tactically failure of camping in a waste field to the municipal golf course. The accident was only a happenstance where one soldier turned on a flashlight and allowed the enemies to spot them. Kiowa immediately submerged into the waste due to explosions. Soldiers tried to get traction and salvage Kiowa's carcass. After witnessing the cadaver, Azar finally can understand the feeling of condolence. Cross arrived at a conclusion that no matter where the blame is placed, for example to the makers of munitions, consequences will never disappear.

The year was 1945 September 2nd when the news came. Accordingly to the newspaper, our troops were coming home soon. Hitler and his troops surrendered and Hitler apparently assassinated himself. The day before was a normal barefoot day for me, running the cane poles on the old Messer Creek. Everywhere I went, was briar patches that were havoc on my feet. You could her the commotion for miles or yelling and cursing the sharp prickly little devils. I knew our troops were overseas fighting Hitler and his Nazis and I was proud of them because my daddy got drafted, I prayed for them every night before I went to bed. I didn’t know when my daddy would be back, but I knew it would be soon. I was the man of the house for over six years today. Putting meat on our table, making sure the garden is taken care of, and feeding and milking the animals, for six years exactly. I had to take place of my dad, that means chopping wood, checking and fixing fences, cutting cedar fence posts if the

I was around three-and-a-half years old when I encountered my first reading challenge. At that age, I fell in love with Dr. Seuss books like many other children my age. From One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, to The Cat in the Hat, I read them all. I spent hours hidden away in my family’s dimly lit storage closet reading. However, there was one Dr. Seuss book in my house that I purposely avoided: Fox in Socks.

I’ve experienced plenty of “Holes” although they were mainly pot holes. The one that was the hardest and darkest for me to escape of was when I had an immense argument with my father. We are constantly together; he drives me insane, besides which parent doesn’t? Still, I would never defiantly talk back. However, this time I couldn’t control it, I raged and confronted him.